


You'll live

by Galacticspaceboi



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Dark, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Mental Instability, Nightmares, Not Canon Compliant, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Sexual Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Race To The Edge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-19
Updated: 2019-05-19
Packaged: 2020-03-08 01:14:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18885130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Galacticspaceboi/pseuds/Galacticspaceboi
Summary: Astrid finds out what really happened between Viggo and Hiccup.(post httyd 2.)





	You'll live

**Author's Note:**

> What's up boys? and girls, and everything in between? No body asked for this but oh well lmao

“Hiccup.”

Her voice was soft and hesitant, even to her own ears. Her stomach was tense with apprehension, but she tried to will it away, forcing herself to stay calm.

She lay in his bed, with her head on his chest, feeling warm and tired and safe; his prosthetic was removed and his bare legs brushed against hers, his stubbly hair slightly ticklish, but the feeling was so familiar, so comfortable and frankly so domestic that it help ease her into the _sleepy-soft-rest_ mindset that she had began to associate with this sort of setting. Despite that, the truth was it wasn’t often she could drag Hiccup away from his workshop at night, so she wanted to cherish the moment. It was intimate, and peaceful.

He hummed quietly, in question, and she felt the vibrations travel through his chest. He was warm, a little hard and bony, with lean, wiry muscle that wasn’t particularly comfortable to rest on, but his skin was smooth, and the light dusting of auburn chest hair was a cushion for her cheek. His right hand was lightly stroking her hair, and she was making a conscious effort to keep her saliva in her mouth. He really _did_ know how to work those hands.

Besides the point. She needed to focus.

There wasn’t a good way to attack this. It was something that had only gotten worse over the years, and as the bud of their relationship open up into flowers, more and more each day, with every shared smile and tender kiss, every shared combat sessions, every chiefly duty, she felt as if the one oppressive secret that was weighing him down needed to be free, out in the open. She needed to know, so she could help.

“Do you, remember Viggo?”

Gods, okay, that was not the right way to approach it. Hiccup stiffened up, marginally, but the hand didn’t stop working its way through her hair, methodically, slow, with practised ease.

After showing Hiccup the basics of braiding, he had really taken a liking to it, electing to try on her hair, and eventually his own. He slowly added to his little collection, with the majority being behind his ears, tied with tiny bits of twine and burned into place with Toothless’ gentle flame. During festivals and other such occasions, he adorned beads in the little plaits, which were _adorable,_ making him look wild and roguish, something which was so _not_ Hiccup, but it was a funny antithesis.

“Of course I remember Viggo.”

His tone was light, but unsteady. Shaky, like he was fighting to keep any shred of emotion from his voice. It was hard. She knew it was going to be tough, but then again, most things with Hiccup Haddock required a bit of coaxing and coercing to extract.

“Yeah. Okay, dumb question.”

She sighed, squirming a little until she was looking up at his face. He looked, conflicted, eyebrows quirking in the way that said he was uncomfortable, but he managed a lopsided smile. It didn’t reach his eyes.

“You don’t have to worry about Viggo, Astrid.”

He kissed her forehead, and her eyes fluttered shut. He smelled like pine trees, fresh and citrusy, and his hair was still slightly wet from when he bathed earlier. It lay across his forehead, thick and heavy, a fiery red in the soft candlelight. He took after his mother in many ways, in his slight build and high cheekbones, but his father’s expressive green eyes and fiery hair were there, although the he wasn’t quite a red head, they had very similar effects.

“I took care of it.”

Those words were firm, holding a strong sense of finality to them. They sounded practiced, as if he’d repeated them many times over in order to convince someone. The sad realisation hit her: _he really was not okay._

Three years ago, they’d left Berk to find the great beyond as young, naive teenagers. Teenagers who didn’t know that deep rooted issues against dragons roamed the empty waters, and that they would scarcely have time to discover new species when they were too busy fighting for their _lives._

Back when Hiccup was slowly starting to worm his way into her thoughts, as something more than a friend, and Stoic the Vast has been alive and healthy, caring for their home village with the same pragmatic dexterity he’d always possessed.

Viggo, was three years ago.

They’d moved on. Faced bigger, badder villains. Hiccup had matured, a lot, losing his father to his own beloved dragon (sort of) and having the responsibility of Chief thrust upon him. He’d had to grow up, so fast, from being the young boy who wished he could fly, could be _free,_ like the creatures that infatuated him so much, that motivated him to create a utopia, to discover, to train, to ride, to _soar_...to having his metaphorical wings clipped down, burdened with the safety of his Tribe and the danger that came with protecting it.

Yet somehow, it was always Viggo.

That was who he dreamed about. They weren't every night, no. But sometimes her sixth sense would haul her up during the moon’s long hours, and she’d find Hiccup tossing and turning, moaning in anguish and whimpering Viggo’s name, face frozen in pure terror.

That was who he wrote about, in his journals (Astrid wasn’t sneaking, per say. She was worried). Several pages dedicated to his whereabouts. His name, written in large, chaotic scribbles, underlined many times with strokes that marked the passing of a panic attack. Stabs in the paper. Rips, folds. Some pages were stained, with water marks, the surface uneven and crinkled where the liquid had evaporated, _tears_.

In short, Hiccup was plagued with Viggo.

Even _before_ his father passed, there had been this heaviness in his eyes, and he’d sneak away from her every so often, to Thor knew where, for hours on end. Again, not entirely uncommon for Hiccup, it was what he loved, but these were different. He’d come back. Hours later, sometimes _days,_ with no explanation. She’d tried everything - gentle coaxing to full on shouting, screaming, letting out her worry and pain and frustration because this boy, this stupid boy didn’t know how much he meant to her and didn’t know how much it _tortured_ her to see him sad.

It was rough, to say the least, because she knew there was nothing she could do, and she didn’t have the guts to follow him and confront. He was happy, surface level, in a way that presented a positive outside image, a way that didn’t trouble his busy father.

And then Stoic had died.

That was tough. His nightmares were frequent then, so bad that he didn’t want to sleep at night, preferring to sit watch over the silent village from atop his tired dragon.

He took care of his people, exceptionally well: he was kind, gentle, attentive, empathetic, and wickedly smart. Any problem was dealt with pragmatic care and swift ease, and Berk lived in the same sort of harmony as it had done under his father. He was amazing, put simply. Sure, he had his flaws, an explosive temper that lead to self destructive tendencies, and his prevalent sympathetic and considerate nature made him unable to take the darkest paths, even when they were necessary.

Overall, however, life went on perfectly fine, at least at a glance.

His excursions to mystery locations came to a screeching halt, as he had his duties, and he seemed to sleep better than before.

Her relief was short lived, as Astrid realised he’d never stopped leaving Berk, he just did it in the dead of night, when no one was around to question him. It was dangerous, wrong, and terrifying, to think that she had no idea about this secret part of his life. Still, he denied and denied, calling her overbearing and insisting over and over again that he was _fine_.

He got thin.

Okay, he’d always been _thin_ , but this was different. He stopped eating, pretty much all together, and was so white and pale you could see his blue veins under his skin. He was a tall man, and by losing the surprisingly strong yet streamline muscle mass he’d accumulated over the years, he looked willowy, vulnerable and ill.

The thing is, he didn’t even seem aware of these changes. Like he almost didn’t notice how his belts seemed to _sag_ off of him, pulled to their tightest limit yet still not small enough. He didn’t seem to notice that he’d began to develop a nervous tic in his face, that would fire madly whenever he was stressed or nervous, or that the reason he had no energy to do anything any more was because he was denying his body the most _basic needs_.

Things stayed that way for maybe three months, before he’d gotten sick. Like, really sick. His immune system was low, due to the lack of nutrients in his body, so the winter had been rough on him. He’d lay, covered in thick furs yet shivering constantly, tears leaking out of his eyes and trailing down his blue-tinged cheeks.

After that scare, she’d decided enough was enough. Valka, being a Haddock, had spoken to him, alone, and whatever she had said seemed to revive his spirit, because once he was on the mend, he came to Astrid and proposed to her.

 _“Not for now,”_ he’d said. _“I know we’re not ready, yet. But, for when we are. Like a, pre-engagement.”_

She’d accepted, feeling the blood rush to her head dizzyingly at the fact that _they’d be okay_ , Hiccup was okay, they would work through it. She’d cried that night, into his arms, and he’d murmured his apologies into her skin like a prayer.

_“I don’t know, I don’t know what happened to me. Just forgive me, please.”_

It was subtle. With Hiccup gaining weight and confidence in equal strides, their relationship progressed healthily. Astrid learned more and more about him, about his likes, his dislikes, and his hard limits, which were beginning to pile up like skeletons despite his supposed reformation, things that he refused to acknowledge. So, she didn’t mention them either. After all, he was fine, now. He stopped disappearing. He ate three meals a day, and slept a healthy amount.

She learned to accept that Hiccup was a little jumpy on touching. That wasn’t _so_ bad, was it? Some people were like that. When it was on his terms, and was relatively brief, he was fine. When you surprised him, he’d get...it wasn’t, well- he’d just, be a little _shaken_. Nothing he couldn’t bounce back from, and it was small enough that she hadn’t thought it was an issue, at first. But it left a strange gnawing feeling in the pit of her stomach. He hadn’t _always_ been like this, had he?

Sexual intimacy was not a part of their relationship. Not yet, she hoped, as Astrid had assumed after they married he’d open up, but he got..noticeably uncomfortable every time she’d advanced, so she backed off.

She didn’t mind, anyway. They kissed often enough, which was wonderful, and the delicate familiarity in which they held each other on nights like this was more than enough. It was chaste, sweet, and somewhat childish. They teased each other; he’d kiss her cheek; she’d hold his face delicately and swipe the pads of her thumbs underneath his eyes. (Eyes which still held such an ancient expression, something wise beyond his years, something so _harrowing_ , even when buried underneath the opulent green, filled with so much love and passion.)

They had struggled a lot, over the last few years, fighting an enemy neither could see.

An enemy that seemed to live in both their minds, stuck to the inside of their souls like tree sap, and still, she didn’t know why. He’d never told her.

She just had to stand behind him, wading through the sea of problems and anxiety and declining mental health, as Hiccup battled ferociously with the monsters in his head.

It was time.

“But, how? Hiccup, you told me it didn’t matter, at the time. You said it was _fine_.”

She tried to keep the bitterness out of her voice. That was the biggest lie to ever exist. Whatever Viggo Grimborn had done on that day was the catalyst for some of the darkest times in both their lives. It tore them apart, exploded them, before piecing the back together, albeit stronger, but fearful, waiting for the next strike.

_Hide and pray it does not find you._

For some reason, as she looked into his eyes, his frightened eyes, resembling a caged animal, that’s all she could think of.

“But, you’re not fine. You never were fine, after that. And I want to know why, Hiccup.”

There was a long beat of silence. His voice was just a murmur when he spoke.

“I told you, it doesn’t matter-”

“ _Please._ I just want to help.”

Whatever it was, she didn’t care. It was all coming out, and she was going to be there for him when it did.

His lip quivered, but he clenched his jaw stubbornly, blinking hard, and glanced over his shoulder to where Toothless snored softly on his warm smouldering rock. He seemed to be carefully considering his words.

“It was years ago, Astrid. I’m fine. I did what I had to.”

“What did you do? What did he do? I just want to know, so I can help you. You’re, not okay, and it’s - _awful_. I can’t just watch you suffer alone, like I’ve done for the past three years.”

She paused, collecting her thoughts. She couldn’t be confrontational, but she had to make a point.

“After Stoic…” Her voice was soft again, a couple marks lower than her previous crescendo. “I watched you, I watched you - kill yourself, or try, at least. I just - that’s all I could do. I was helpless, nothing I said did anything. You don’t understand what that was like for me, Hiccup. It was like watching an arrow shoot into you in slow motion, and I was just waiting for - I was _waiting_ -“

Her voice cracked, pathetically, and she sniffed.

“And I let it go. I let it all go because I love you so much, and I know how hard it’s all been for you. From Dagur, to Drago, every single enemy that has caused you grief and anguish and pain and _I can’t_ -"

Breathe. In, out, carry on.

“I can’t see, why Viggo, why he was the one that - he _broke_ you, Hiccup. Just, lay it on me. Let me carry some of it, too. You don’t have to be - alone, _all_ the time.”

His eyes were steadily filling with tears, so fast he couldn’t even blink them back this time. She felt her throat close up when she saw his expression crumple.

“ _Astrid_. My love,” He whispered her name, like it was something sacred, his eyes huge jewels, shimmering like blades of grass dancing in the wind.

“Please, it’s not - I wasn’t strong enough, or smart enough to beat him. I had to, I had to do it. It wasn’t noble or courageous or strong, or, or _Viking-like._ ”

He paused, breathing hard.

“It was _torture_. It was sickening. But I did it, to protect you. To protect Toothless, my dad, my people.”

_Torture._

She felt weightless, out of her body, like the whole world was turning upside down. She cupped his cheek, and he leaned into it. Her hands shook, but neither of them mentioned it, and Hiccup pretended not to notice.

“Not smart enough? Not strong enough? I don’t know who you’re talking about here, but it isn’t certainly isn’t you, Hiccup Haddock. I love you. I love you a thousand times over. I just want you to be happy.”

He titled his head, kissing her palm softly. His eyes were steadily leaking, now, but he didn’t acknowledge it. He just stared at her with adoration, a tenderness that never failed to make her heart swell, giving her the rush and the sheer thrill of flying, without the fear of falling.

“I _am_ happy, my sweet. I have the most amazing lover in all the Nine Realms.”

His voice was watery, and she could feel his resolve cracking. The tall, impenetrable wall he had built up since Viggo was damaged, and with one last hit it would fall.

“Please.” She felt her own eyes sting with emotion, welling up inside her before sliding down, a last ditch attempt. _Please, Hiccup._

He held up for a good few seconds, before another large tear slipped out, rolling down his cheek slowly. He gave a wretched sob, choking down his sorrow.

“Hey, _hey._ ”

She gently coaxed him upright, wanting him to be comfortable, and leaned forward, kissing the silvery tear tracks that caught the candlelight, rubbing soothing circles into the side of his neck.

It was at least a minute before he spoke.

His voice was scratchy, mournful. Helpless.

“I didn’t want it, Astrid. I _never_ did. I promise you, I said no.”

“Said, said no?”

He just shut his eyes, tight, face flushed and contorted in anguish.

Oh.

_Oh._

“No. No, oh my _gods_ , Hiccup, no, you - he didn’t-"

It was like the last piece of the sickening puzzle slipped into place.

It all made sense. The disassociation with his body. The heavy belts on his clothes. The aversion to touching. The disconnect from sexual intimacy.

“I didn’t- I _tried._ I tried, but there was no other way. I, I _had to_.” He sobbed.

Oh, she’d never seen him cry so hard, not ever. He’d always been the silent type, tears being a last resort for his emotions: after they’d been so wound up into tendrils of a hurricane, the tears usually just fell out, released into the air after being forced inside for so long.

This was..

It was heart wrenching. It shook his frame to the core, like a fragile sailboat in Odin’s mighty storms, so hard she had to squeeze him tight in an attempt to calm it. The tsunami of it all stole her breath, as he gave up fighting and just let go.

“I had to keep you safe.”

Astrid let him speak, too shocked to do anything else. Her body felt sapped of energy, and she felt a chilling numbness in the very pit of her stomach.

“He said, he said, just once. And then it would all be over. But he lied. He _always_ lied, Astrid, and I never saw through it.” He spluttered, and absently she saw Toothless perk up from the corner of her eye.

She gave the dragon a helpless look, and he padded over, softly, eyes sad.

“I’m just so - I was so dumb, to think he’d leave us alone.”

She cleared her throat, swallowing down the lump of emotion before tentatively attempting to respond.

“Oh _fuck,_ Hiccup. I can’t- I can’t _imagine_ what it must have been like. I’m so, _so_ sorry. But, he left us, ever since that night back on The Edge. He's in your head, and - and _Thor_ knows that’s hard to deal with too. But he’s gone, Kærasti.”

“No.” His eyes snapped open, and they were hollow.

“He didn’t leave us alone, Astrid. He never did.”

She stared hard at him, studying the tightness of his jaw, the coldness of his expression. This wasn’t just mental torment. It wasn't just one earth shattering event that had happened on that day. Gods, she'd been so _stupid._ This was way bigger than she thought.

She felt broken at the realisation.

 _Everyone can change_ , she remembered Hiccup saying once. He had trusted him.

“He _lied_. He, told me, that he’d leave, Call it all off, if - if I just-"

He took a deep shuddering breath, as Astrid stared in horror. This was Hiccup’s biggest flaw. He was too soft. He really did believe that the whole world and all of its problems belonged on his shoulders, and that his own safety should always be compromised to help others.

“He did it. I - I mean, it wasn’t that bad. For the weight of his sacrifice, it seemed like, like a fair deal.”

He gave a small snivelling sound as his tears came to a halt.

“But he didn’t mean it. He manipulated me, Astrid. He, he wanted to _fuck_ me as many times as he could. Over and over and _over_ again.”

She felt the breath leave her lungs at the visceral hatred in his voice, the heaviness of his expression, the sharpness of his words.

“And he did.” He said bitterly. He looked her dead in the eyes.

“I - all those time, you’d ask me where I went? I wanted to tell you. I wanted to - I _swear_ I did. But - I needed you, safe, I needed my dad safe. I needed, _Toothless_ safe.”

He gestured to his dragon, who was still sitting at the edge of their bed, eyes tired but attentive, emotive.

“You know after I, got really sick. My mom, she thought..she thought it was all because of my dad. Because of his death. She - of course, she didn’t know, but she told me. She told me to man up. She told me my problems couldn’t be dumped onto the rest of the world, that I couldn’t _die,_ without an heir, leaving Berk stranded.”

He must have noticed Astrid’s alarmed expression, because he smiled slightly.

“She was _right_ , Astrid. I needed that. Otherwise, I probably would have died, then and there. She gave me that harsh push, the brutal honesty that pulled me out of my..of my _thoughts_. So I got up, and for better or for worse, I got much better at hiding my emotions.”

Hiccup cleared his throat, giving her a watery smile.

“Dad always told me that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. No matter how hard to was, no matter how much it hurt, I was going to see it through. There would be no more hiding. It was like a switch had been flipped, Astrid.”

She held his hand, tightly, silently encouraging him to continue.

“I kept thinking, it’d all be worth it, somehow. It would all work itself out. That’s what I told myself, to get through it, you know?”

She didn’t know. She had no fucking _idea,_ but she nodded, distraught. This poor man and his big heart, his hero complex.

“The thing that surprised me was, it _hurt_. Like, obviously, I knew I wasn’t going to enjoy it but - sex, it, it’s not supposed to hurt, right? But somehow, he made it, he made it really bad. It’s like he, _got off_ on seeing me in intense pain. One time I bled so much I _passed out_. Didn’t wake up until he-“

He cut himself off, half laughing, half crying. His face was wet with tears, and he was sitting up, knuckles pressed into his eyes.

“Gods, he really did fuck me up, Astrid. He, conditioned me. For every time he showed me pleasure, he showed me _ten_ times the amount in pain.”

He took a shuddering breath.

“He knew the male body. It wasn’t like, fuck me and be done with it. He wanted to - to hurt me. Physically, mentally, emotionally, _all_ of it. It was the most humiliating and, and _shameful_ thing you can do to your enemy.”

He averted his eyes, licking his dry lips.

“He did dirty, depraved things to me. Made my body feel things, that I truly never want to feel again. The nightmares, they were really bad. I'd feel the bruises, feel his phantom touch, and wake up in my bed, unable to move or scream for help.”

“Oh, Hiccup..”

“But, it _worked!_ It was worth it. That’s what I’m clinging onto.”

His chest was rising and falling a little fast, and he had this manically exhausted smile on his face.

“All of that, hardship. All of it, it wasn’t for nothing. That’s what, gets me through it, most nights.”

His voice was more calm, now, holding an air of acceptance. Like he wanted to move on. She draped her arms around his shaking shoulders, feeling overcome with emotions.

“I’ve had dark thoughts, Astrid.” He confessed into the silence, a beat later.

“The type of thoughts that aren’t meant to stick around for too long. But these, they lingered, like a bad dream. Sometimes I just wanted to -”

She gave a woeful moan, throwing her arms around him, wishing he had come to her.

“Oh, _baby._ It’s okay, I’m here.” He nodded, numbly, exhausted, eyelids heavily drooping.

“You feel my heart?” She gently took one of his hands in her own, slipping if past the hem of her night clothes and placing it on her chest. It was cold, and his fingers twitched slightly.

“It’s beating, for you. And I’m not going _anywhere._ I promise.”

Hiccup was crying again, silently. The tears were just falling out, and his eyes were hooded, as if he had no energy to keep them open.

“ _Please,_ don’t leave. I know I’ve been bad, Astrid. I know. I know I made you..worry. And I’m _sorry._ ”

His eyes were heavy, etched with a sadness that shouldn’t have been there. He didn’t look strong, right now. He looked _crushed._

She tried to answer, but couldn’t articulate herself in words. Her tongue felt heavy, a cumbersome weight in her mouth.

Instead, she surged forward, pressing her lips to his own. It was a warm gesture, though he could scarcely kiss back, his lips quivering too much and defeated sobs still tumbling out.

He tasted like his tears, salty, and it made her kiss him harder, hold him harder. This was the man who she’d _die_ for.

“But,” he concluded as they pulled away, eyes fierce, still leaking tears.

“I’d do it all again to save you. Always. _Forever._ ”

* * *

 

She dozed off, slightly, with Hiccup’s caring hands in her hair once again the rise and fall of his chest hypnotic and comforting. She felt slightly pathetic, as after all of the hardship that had come out tonight, the things Hiccup had been through, _she_ was the one seeking comfort. Still, she relished it. She just felt to safe and secure, so utterly _loved-_

“Astrid?”

She jerked awake at the tentative whisper. The candles had burned down to stumps, and Toothless was curled up at the end of their bed like an overgrown feline.

“Yeah, Hiccup?”

He looked so beautiful in the moonlight the streamed through the window, all long lashes and messy hair, freckles and sleep-flushed skin, but his eyes were still distant. Searching.

“Are you sure - do you still, want to marry me?”

She felt slight shock at the potency of the question, the poignancy she felt at his uncertainty. How on _earth_ could he think -

“Of course, Hiccup. You know, I love you.”

He nodded, a little urgently, kissing the corner of her mouth.

“But, I’m not- I’ve had, _sex_ , before. With someone else. You realise-”

“I know. And I don't care. You haven’t had sex, Hiccup. You didn’t want it. That, what he...what he did to you…”

She took his hand in hers.

“It means _nothing_. And I promise you, you’re going to get all the help you need, from now on. You’re not alone, Chief.”

He nodded, the beginnings of a smile working their way onto his face.

She let him just be for a few more minutes, not wanting to wipe the pure expression off, but there was one more thing she had to know:

“Hiccup, is Viggo - still..”

“He’s dead.” Hiccup answered, shortly.

His eyes were a little distant again.

“I killed him.” She thought as much.

“When?”

He cleared his throat.

“Last week.”

Her mouth fell open in shock.

“Hiccup!” She gasped out, feeling faint. A week ago? How often did he have to...how many times had Viggo hurt him?

“I just.. _.couldn’t,_ anymore. With dad’s birthday coming up, everything just felt so.. _raw_. So I, I asked him what to do. My dad, I mean.”

He squeezed her hand.

“He always talks to me, sometimes. I hear him, his spirit. Even though I never told him, while he was alive, just knowing he was - there, really _helped_. I asked him, last week, and, he told me it was time. He told me - that it had gone on long enough.”

“Oh, Hiccup…”

“And Viggo is a liar. He’s a filthy snake. I, I Terror Mailed Dagur and Heather. Got them to look into his armada. Turns out, he had maybe _twenty_ ships.”

He gave a high pitched laugh.

“And I thought- twenty ships! That was it! The bastard - took he cock out all ready to, to - and I, I cut his _fucking_ head off.”

His voice was ragged, his expression slightly savage, haunted.

She had nothing to say to that.

The conversation was over, for now, so she simply slumped, in the warmth of his arms.

It didn’t bother her a _lick_ that this man holding her had killed Viggo.

She lay there for a while, pondering. It must have been minutes later when she at last spoke up.

“Viggo was a monster, Hiccup. You did well to rid the earth of his presence.”

Hiccup hummed.

“I’m _proud_ of you. You know that? I always knew- you were a fighter. Never giving up. Always, always searching for another way.”

He didn’t respond, but she kept going regardless.

“You are the bravest, most stubborn... _knucklehead_ I know. Viggo didn’t take that from you. He took nothing from you. I-“

She was cut off by a soft snore.

She laughed.

_They’d be okay._


End file.
